West Virginia Democrat. [volume] (Charles Town, W. Va.) 1885-1890, 1887-08-05
West Virgin Democrat.

inclination, TO investigate public |
questions for the sole purpose of as
certaining what is best for the com
munity at large, There are still
fewer with the disposition, coupled
with capacity, who take the trouble
to educate the public with no object
in view except to bring about 4 cor
rect understanding of public Ques-
tions. The vast majority ofour abiest
intellects are so engrOSsed with pri-
vate business, that they give none CT
their time to the duty of moulding
the popular judgment to promote
purely public objects
On the other hand, there are i'm
mense private pecuniary interests
which are concerned to prevent intel
ligent and patriotic voting. TwoeN'
amples illustrate this. The Inter
national League, is an association OF
manufacturers who have assessed
themselves to raise 100000 n year,
to be expended in building up pub
lie opinion in favor Of tarif-tax for
the purpose Of protection. a mo-
ments thought will satisfy any per
son, that the benefciaries of an I'M
Just law can we'll afford to spend
money to prevent its repeal. This,
is one example: take another. The
railroad managers have in their per-
manent employ the very ablest men
in the land; their lawyers are occu-
pied in finding legal ways to extract
from the public the greatest amount
Of their earnings; its lobbyists are
constantly occupied in excluding
from the Legislature the men able
and willing to check the unlawful az
gressions of railroad corporations.
AS a matter of course this lobby
would be powerless to control either
nominations or elections, did the
body of the people have n correct un-
derstanding of the facts; but never,
i'm this State, until the DEMOCRAT was
established. has there been any news
paper that made a determined and
intelligent effort to give to the pub
lie that character Of information
which the railroad managers desire
suppressed.
We have neither time nor space TO
expand these thoughts. We appeal
to intelligent persons to reflect how
great is the value of a paper Of gen
eral circulation that is purely pub
lie. rs distinguished from 4 private
paper; how great is the value Of a
paper, that regularly gives to them
the best thoughts Of very able men
who have investigated the subjects
upon which they write and who seek
no object except the public good.
The hostility to this paper comes
from persons who do not wish the
rank and file to arrive ut q correct
understanding of the subjects which
chiefly occupy these columns, and
the hostility of such persons is echo
ed by many well meaning men who
have not sufficient independence to
form opinions of their own.
For the first time in this State, a
paper is conducted in utter disre-
gard of favOrS from railroad mana
gers or from millionaire politicians.
and whose editorial columns prove
that it is in the hands Of men of
brains, education and enlightened
conviction. Such paper ought to
have a circulation ofat least 10000:
it will have such a circulation ifthe
more intelligent men of the State,
take the trouble to urge their neigh
bors to send for sample copies.
The above was suggested by
letter from one of the best informed
and most obsevant men within our
acquaintance. a brief extract from
his letter covers the case.
AuGUST lst.-Being at Berkely
Springs with the lawyers, l sound
ed those of most celebrity as toyour
paper: every one said, it contained
more instructive and interesting
matter than they got in ten times as
much reading in other papers. They
spoke Of it as being so different from
the common run that it could not be
compared to any other paper 1t
was noticeable that every one men
toned the same thing, that it has
given the people more knowledge IN
two years than they had gotten in
twenty years out Of other papers, and .
had set more men to thinking, than .
all the other papers published. .
The best known lawyer present said,
1t was the first paper he looked for .